Yahoo! today announced that the latest version of Yahoo! Mail will roll out of beta testing and be available for all 284 million users worldwide to upgrade in the coming weeks.

Already one of the largest email brands in the world, the new Yahoo! Mail "will bring conversations to life through a faster, safer, and more personal communications experience," the company said. Yahoo! will also make the latest version of Yahoo! Mail available to its global partners, including Nokia.

The new version of Yahoo! Mail makes it easier for people to share, organize and store online conversations and media content with a focus on improved performance, enhanced spam protection and a customizable inbox. It will also offer consistent features across PC, mobile and tablet devices. Features include:

- Social Infusion: People can instantly respond to messages from Facebook, Yahoo! Groups, Yahoo! Mail and other webmail providers with a new reply bar. Additionally, people can view photo slideshows, inline videos and more from within their inboxes. People can also view and share notifications and updates from Twitter, Facebook and Zynga from a new Updates tab.

- Conversations Aren't Just Email: Yahoo! Mail prioritizes messages and contacts that matter most. When people want to compose an IM, SMS or email they will find their most frequent contacts and lists shown to them. People can now also chat with Facebook friends alongside Windows Live and Yahoo! Messenger contacts and view all of their past IM and text conversations within Yahoo! Mail.

- Tailor Your Inbox: People can choose from over 50 themes and stationery options to customize how they view messages and contacts.

- App-ify Mail: People can now track their online orders with the All My Purchases app, get removed from unwanted newsletters using the Unsubscriber app or send mega files using Attach Large Files by YouSendIt.

- Speed: Leveraging Yahoo!'s cloud technology, the new Yahoo! Mail promises to provide performance that is twice as fast as previous versions of Yahoo! Mail, even in regions where only basic Internet speeds are offered.

- Spam Buster: Advanced SpamGuard technology and a new anti-phishing platform have reduced spam reports by 60 percent and help protect people from email hackers and unwanted instant message conversations.

To upgrade an existing Yahoo! Mail account or create a new Yahoo! Mail account, go to overview.mail.yahoo.com and click the 'Upgrade Now' button.

In addition to rolling out to Yahoo! users worldwide, the latest version of Yahoo! Mail will be available to Yahoo!'s global partners, including Nokia, Verizon, Rogers Telecommunications, and other device manufacturers and broadband service providers. Nokia email and chat services are now "Powered by Yahoo." This is a core component of the worldwide strategic alliance announced with Nokia in 2010, providing people around the world with access to services across desktop and mobile devices.